


Up In Flames

by ThatComicGirl52



Series: Monthly Oneshots [16]
Category: Batman (Comics), Batman - All Media Types, DCU, DCU (Comics)
Genre: M/M, Monthly oneshot, but nothing too graphic, some violence
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-01
Updated: 2019-04-01
Packaged: 2019-12-30 06:44:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,449
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18310286
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ThatComicGirl52/pseuds/ThatComicGirl52
Summary: “It was the night when everything went up in flames.”





	Up In Flames

**Author's Note:**

> This is my monthly oneshot for April. Thank you so much to Do_The_Cool_Whip, who without her, this oneshot would not exist. This was the oneshot pairing that was voted for this previous month on my monthly oneshot poll. To find out how you can take part in my poll, and have access to more exciting things having to do with my fanfiction, check out my tumblr at thatcomicgirl52.tumblr.com.  
> This fic takes place in a different universe then my fanficiton, Million Reasons To Leave.

* * *

It was the night when everything went up in flames. 

Owlman and I had been working for months to take down Falcone’s criminal empire. It wasn’t an easy task, considering the legacy the Falcones have in Gotham City. They run the majority of the drug trade in the city, and not just in our city, but in several major cities across the globe. Carmine Falcone, the man in charge and the head of the Italian family, has a stronghold in several countries.

When Owlman had decided almost a year ago that it was time to put his reign to an end, he knew it would be no easy task. There would be a lot of obstacles in his way, but it had to be done. Carmine Falcone had left him no choice. He had betrayed Owlman’s trust, and for that, he must be punished.

It’s pathetic how easy it is to sneak up on Carmine’s security and take them out. You would think someone with Carmine’s fortune could afford better security. Sure, he might not have the kind of money that Owlman does, but surely he can afford some security that isn’t so easy to slice into four clean cuts.

Owlman lets me have the honors of kicking Falcone’s office door in. I can feel the adrenaline running through my veins, reeling me forward. I feel giddy, not even trying to hide the manic grin from my face. 

I love this. I love every part of this. The hunt, the begging, the blood splattering across the walls as I take a life. It’s like being high, but so much better. Nothing gives me more of a rush than killing. 

“What the hell is going on?!” Falcone exclaims, standing up from behind the dark, mahogany desk. He’s older than the last time I saw him; more lines around his eyes, his hair as white as the winter snow. I didn’t think I had seen him too long ago. It must have been longer than I thought. 

Falcone’s an old man. His death is something that’s been coming for a long time now. We’re just pushing him towards it a little faster.

“Sofia,” Falcone says, not waiting for a response and gesturing to his grown daughter. 

I almost hadn’t noticed his giant sized daughter looming in the corner. She steps out of the shadows, and I can’t hide my obvious disgust. How did I  _ not  _ notice her before?

No way is that... _ thing  _ a girl. Looks more like a huge ass, boxy giant to me. She has more in common with Solomon Grundy than she does a woman.

Sofia doesn’t hesitate for a moment before charging at us. Idiot.

“We had a deal, Carmine,” Owlman says as we jump out of the way, him to the left and me to the right. I backflip onto the top of a bookshelf, landing in a crouched position. I watch Sofia Falcone through narrow eyes. “You broke that deal.”

Falcone looks shocked, his lips parting in surprise and his eyes widening with realization. He knows that we know. He’s been going behind Owlman’s back, making deals and trades with drug lords that Owlman had directly told him not to. Collecting money without giving a percentage of it to Owlman.

He’s been lying. He’s been cheating. He’s been trying to take what belongs to Owlman. And now he has to atone for his sins.

“Oh, screw this.” Falcone says under his breath, pulling a gun out from the inside of his suit jacket. 

He starts rapidly firing at Owlman, but Owlman already saw it coming. He manages to dodge the bullets, each bullet hitting the wall or furniture instead. Sofia comes at him from behind, Owlman too distracted to notice her.

But that’s not a problem. I fly off the bookshelf, kicking Sofia in the small of her back. She falls from the impact, landing on Falcone’s desk. The desk collapses and breaks underneath her weight.

Fucking giant of a mammoth.

Carmine jumps out of the way, cursing under his breath. I don’t pay any attention to him though, all my focus is on Sofia. She rolls off the desk with a groan, but I don’t give her the chance to get up. 

Owlman didn’t say anything against killing tonight. I take that as an invitation to pounce on Sofia and take one of my sharp talons to her throat, swiftly ending her life. It happens in a blink of an eye.

Her blood spills out of her throat like scarlet paint. I smile at the familiar sight. I lick my lips, the coppery scent hitting my nostrils. I breathe the smell in, closing my eyes in bliss.

I didn’t even give the woman a fighting chance. She might have been stronger, but I was faster.

“NOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!” Carmine Falcone cries out, charging at me. I look up just in time to meet his gaze, surprised to see the mix of wrath, hatred, and heartbreak in his eyes. His eyes burn like an angry fire, but I can see how wet they are with tears.

It’s strange to see someone get so upset over losing family. It makes me wonder, would Owlman react in a similar fashion if he lost me? I’m not so sure.

It’s clear from his expression, that Falcone intends to murder me for what I’ve done to his daughter. His face is so red, his gaze burns, and he’s looking at me as if I’ve taken the world from him. I prepare for an attack. Falcone’s an old man; he won’t be a challenge for me. But before Falcone can reach me, Owlman stops him with a blow to the face. 

Falcone goes flying against the wall with a loud crash. I blink down at him, standing there peacefully with my arms hanging at my sides. I watch Falcone, tilting my head to the side. Like a curious child watching a wild animal slowly die.

“You killed my daughter, l’ll kill you,” he growls, staring daggers at me. I laugh at that. It’s funny that he thinks he actually stands a chance of hurting me.

“I’m shutting you down, Falcone.” Owlman says, pulling a small device out of his utility belt. Falcone’s eyes go from me to the small remote control in Owlman’s hand. His eyes widen to the size of golf balls.

“What’s that?” He asks, his voice filled with fear and panic. Owlman’s smug smile matches my own. 

“I had Talon plant a few dozen bombs in your building earlier today. With a click of this button, they’ll all go off like fireworks on the Fourth of July.” Owlman explains, his voice lighter and more amused than usual. He’s enjoying himself.

Falcone opens his mouth as if to object, but then closes it again. He’s at a loss for what to say. He knows that nothing he says now will change what Owlman has to do. He knows there’s no use in begging. Owlman doesn’t tolerate beggars, and even if he did, Falcone wouldn’t stoop that low. He’s got too much pride for that.

Instead, he turns to me, his eyes shining with mischief. It’s quite unsettling, actually.

“Tell me, Talon, did you ever find out who killed your parents?” 

The question takes me by surprise. It’s the last thing I expected him to say. I tilt my head farther to the side, watching him with a furrowed brow. Falcone seems all too pleased with himself for a man who is about to be killed. Why would such a question bring him so much pleasure? And why ask it now?

“We solved that case together. A long time ago,” Owlman answers. His voice is deeper now, more threatening. It’s a warning to Falcone. A warning for him to shut his mouth, or Owlman will shut it for him. “Don’t say anything you might regret, Carmine.”

Falcone glares back at Owlman and frowns. 

When he speaks, he’s speaking to me, “Zucco wasn’t the man responsible for killing your parents. I know this because I helped the man who was. Owlman.”

I have no response for that.

I can’t even comprehend thoughts for a moment. The whole world stops for a second as I try to understand what Falcone just said. I can’t hear Owlman’s response. I can barely understand it when Owlman kicks Falcone in the gut. The whole world just seems to melt away at Falcone’s words.

I know I shouldn’t believe him. Falcone will say whatever he needs to to get to me and Owlman. At this point, he has nothing left to lose. So I shouldn’t believe a word he says.

But I do. I do believe him, because I think I’ve always known what he says to be true. For a long time now, I’ve thought that maybe I was wrong about Zucco. Maybe he wasn’t the person responsible for the death of my parents.

It’s not that the evidence against Zucco didn’t add up. It did. All too well, actually. Everything just fell into place so perfectly. All the evidence and clues just pointed to Zucco a little too easily. Almost as if someone had planned it that way. Almost as if someone wanted me to believe Tony Zucco had killed my parents, that way I wouldn’t realize who had really killed them.

I was young when we solved that case. I was barely nine years old. It’s easy to fool a child, but it’s not so easy to fool a trained assassin and detective. I never told Owlman about it, but every once in a while, I would look back at the files on that case and wonder. I’ve gone over all the evidence and paperwork hundreds of times, and every time I do, the more I’m convinced it was all a set up. Tony Zucco may have been framed. 

But I never wanted to admit the truth, because that would mean everything I knew was wrong. My entire life since the death of my parents had been a lie. The man I trusted and loved more than anyone else in the world, had ruined my life forever.

I never wanted to say it out loud, but now I was left with no choice.

“For Christ’s sake, stop spewing lies, Falcone.” Owlman threatens. I look over at the sound of his voice, analyzing him. As if I can read the truth right off of him. I can’t get a proper look at his face behind the cowl though, so all I have to go off of is his body language. 

He’s getting restless, impatient, and if he wasn’t guilty of what Falcone says he is, than he wouldn’t be those things.

I know Owlman like the back of my hand. I can tell when he’s blatantly lying to me. Owlman might be one of the best liars on this earth, but even I can see through the bullshit he’s feeding me right now.

“He’s not lying though, is he?” I hear myself say. I’m surprised by how low and angry my voice is. I didn’t think I was that mad at him. I mean, I should be more furious with Owlman than I am. I don’t understand why I’m so relaxed about all of this.

Owlman finally looks at me, his lips parting. I can practically see the wheels turning in his head, trying to find the right words. But there are no right words.

“Fuck this,” I hear myself say, and then I’m pouncing on Owlman. I don’t know what I plan to do when I leap at him, but then I reach for the remote control in his hands. It’s only then that I know what I have to do. Owlman has to pay for what he’s done to me, just like Carmine Falcone has to pay for what he’s done to us.

I take him by surprise, making it easy for me to slip the remote right out of his hand and into mine. I scramble to the nearest window, bracing myself for the impact. 

I hit the window hard, my shoulder taking the brunt of the hit, as I tuck my head in against my chest in an effort to shield myself. The glass shatters around me as I make contact. I can hear Owlman call after me, but I ignore him. I can barely hear him following me over the sound of the glass breaking.

I tuck and roll out onto the roof, not even thinking about it before I jump off of the building. Owlman will try to catch up to me, but he’ll fail. I’m

smaller, leaner, and faster.

I close my eyes as I fall, the ground coming closer and closer with every passing second. I love the feeling of falling. It reminds me of when I was young, but when I think of that now, I’m just reminded of what Owlman did. 

He’s ruined those memories for me, and for that, he must die.

I loved Thomas, and that’s what hurts the most. I was so in love with him, and even though he never said it, I know he was in love with me too. The way he touched me late at night in his bed told me everything I needed to know. We never had to use our words. Our actions always told us everything we were feeling.

As I aim and shoot my grappling hook, I take a second to reconsider what I’m doing. When I kill, I don’t ask myself whether it’s the right thing to do or not. I just do it. Always, without guilt.

But I consider it now, because I’m not killing just anyone. I’m killing Thomas. The man I love and who raised me. I doubt myself for a moment, but then I remember my parents and what he did to them. And it makes me so enraged, that all I see is red.

I know what I have to do. There’s only one real thing I can do at this point.

I hit the button on the remote without another thought, expecting to hear and feel the shock of the explosions. 

But it never comes.

I swing and land on the roof of a nearby building, looking back at Falcone’s mansion in confusion. What the hell just happened? The bombs should have gone off.

“Foolish boy. I thought I had taught you better than that.” 

My head snaps in his direction. I already know who I’m going to see before I see him.

Owlman stands there, his hands curled into fists and his gaze dark and narrow.

There’s only one word that comes to my mind, “Fuck.”


End file.
